Correction Appended
Bender Library will have more electrical outlets over the next few months, as the building undergoes $350,000 in renovations.
“We’ve clearly identified the needs the student body has,” said University Librarian Bill Mayer.
Though plans for changing the “electrical grid” have not been finalized, Facilities Management and library staff will seek to decrease power consumption while maintaining light exposure and increasing outlet access, according to an e-mail from Lynne Feely, the assistant director of Facilities Management for Capital Renewal and Deferred Maintenance, and George Merchant, the University master electrician.
“Every time a student enters the library and sits down, there should be an outlet there,” Mayer said.
Currently, about one-third of the 1,200 seats in the library have access to an electrical outlet.
“When you come to the library, you’re really there to recharge in a number of ways,” Mayer said.
New furniture in the basement and second and third floors will be upgraded over the next few months using funds from Academic Affairs.
New treads, or pads that provide traction, will be installed in the front stairwell over spring break. Brighter lighting will follow later in the spring.
Also during spring break, University Archives will be moved from the third floor to another part of the library to increase space.
The reading room will be closed during this process. The graduate reading room on the third floor will also be renovated.
New wireless network eaglesecure will also be available in the library by the summer, Mayer said.
Technology upgrades
The library is considering increasing the number of e-readers available, Mayer said.
The library currently circulates four Kindles and eight Nooks, and they are all usually checked out.
That initiative does have its obstacles. HarperCollins, a publishing company, announced on Feb. 25 that if an eBook is checked out 26 times through one library, that library would have to repurchase the eBook before it would be available for use again, Mayer said.
This obstacle is indicative of “the bigger global problem of digital rights management.”
“The ability to have an electronic book and make it more accessible to more people has been a huge challenge for libraries,” Mayer said.
SPSS, an advanced statistics analysis software, will also be available on library computers. The software was previously available only in the Anderson Computing Complex.
Mayer is looking for input from students regarding other renovations to the library to improve its services. Ideas from students and faculty can be submitted to http://www.american.edu/library/forms/suggestion_box.cfm.
The library was originally built in the late 1970s and received major renovations to the first floor a year and a half ago.
zcohen@theeagleonline.com
Correction: An earlier version of this article implied the library was certain to increase the number of e-readers available. In fact, the library is considering increasing the number of e-readers.
